PJ, the Empyrean Colonist
by The Ikran Rider
Summary: Rick and Tinsel encounter an aspiring F-Zero pilot named PJ; a survivor of the destroyed Empyrean Colony.


**A/N: I came up with this idea a few days ago, while wondering how the series should move forward from GP Legend/Climax since they should share one timeline. You'll see some references from a couple different games aside from those; so here goes.**

It was a balmy late summer afternoon and Rick and Tinsel were walking along the sidewalks in Mute City, arm in arm. As the couple were returning to the Dragon Bird EX, they found a skinny alien with cream-colored skin, wide black eyes that could cast a reflection, green gloves, and a long orange-yellow uniform with black and white checkered patterns on it. He was squirting and scrubbing the vehicle's windshield.

Rick immediately marched up to it. "Hey, what're you doing? I just got this machine cleaned on account of the rain and-ergh. You should've asked first, it's all streaky."

"All clear, sir." The extraterrestrial withdrew the small spritzer bottle and held out a hand, begging for money.

"Uh-oh, I just have a debit card on me. I don't have any cash at the moment." he said as he dug through his wallet in his pocket.

He sulked a little. "Oh, that's alright; no charge." He waddled away, his bare feet brushing the rough city pavement.

Looking at the poor state he was in, Tinsel muttered how sorry she felt for him. Rick paused for a moment. Then he brightened as he offered, "Oh, you hungry, fella?" The stranger perked up at the couple. "You should come to the Falcon House; Burt makes this sweet coffee? Out of this world!" he exclaimed. That made him change his mind when he smiled. "Come on, we'll take you to him."

"Alright, sounds neat. But I have a little cabbie of my own." the alien pointed to a hovering taxi that had the same coating and patterns as his uniform.

He followed close behind the Dragon Bird toward the place where their mentor owned, a diner and apartment complex dedicated to the late Captain Falcon, as well as Rick following his legacy. Inside, the janitor, the Mighty Gazelle, was cleansing the tile floors with a tall steam cleaner, while Clank was hunkered over his own tablet. Burt greeted the trio and Rick introduced them to the unfortunate newcomer.

He acquainted himself as PJ, though he'd much prefer his initials than his full name since it was difficult for certain lifeforms to pronounce. He described himself as a 35-year old inhabitant of the Empyrean Colony. One of the best cabbies in the galaxy, he worked for Galaxy Cab, a taxi service that traveled from planet to planet across the universe. He was the highest fare earner of all and was well-renowned for his skilled driving; however he bashfully said he has never following traffic laws well. Rick grimaced a bit at that statement.

As a result, PJ would often get involved in high-speed chases with the Galactic Federation on his tail, but he bragged that he always managed to get away from them. He considers his worst passengers to be either drunks, or couples who could never get their hands off each other.

For once, they can relate to that. "I really hate having some paradise by the dashboard light," Tinsel remarked.

"Especially, when someone is trying to be your chaperone," Rick added. "Drunks could also be the worst company."

"Spoken like a true cop, Rick." Burt admired his past experience.

Due to being the best cabbie in the galaxy, PJ got into a fight when he demanded an increase in wages, as well as a larger taxicab to accompany passengers who're up to 30 feet tall.

"Whoa! Why would you want that?" Tinsel wondered in shock.

"Oh, sometimes I come across passengers that can be as tall as a tree; you should see these guys on the interplanetary basketball team!" he snickered. The pair looked at each other skeptically.

Then, PJ's face became somber as he resisted a laugh. Because of his disobedience, as well as the company never meeting his requests, he ended up getting suspended from his job, leaving him without a steady income nor anything for his beloved Groovy Taxi to do. However, when he spotted an article about the F-Zero Grand Prix, he decided to retool it into a F-Zero machine and enter the competition. Alas, he never had the chance since Dark Million took over, and they were always overbooked. Despite the suspension, he still does some practice races now and again as a way to represent the company to the extent of advertising their services and wearing his cabbie uniform.

"I'm very sorry, PJ." Rick's voice softened.

He sighed, "If only I could go back to my home world, the Empyrean Colony. I wish it hadn't been destroyed."

That made the two pilots startle. They never been to the place, but the Task Force informed them not too long ago. There was a newsbreak that seemed never-ending as they beheld the sight:

His home city was demolished during one of his interplanetary travels as a train ambushed by mechanical gunmen had a bomb that detonated when it reached the city; the colony was so overpopulated that humans hardly settle there. Though one of the females sacrificed herself on impact while four merely escaped. There were massive casualties and about half the metropolis stood; the Galactic Federation believed it to be a form of terrorism.

Through his tablet, Clank gave them the intel. The Empyrean Colony had real estate companies and government officials beginning to recruit space colonists to search for a place to develop a project known as the "Empyrean Colony", which consisted on a floating city and would resolve two main problems: the lack of living places and the overgrowing interstellar population. Even for humans. After spending great amounts of money, a planet was finally chosen to house this project, but after years of trials and errors, especially those made by Dark Million, it barely did approve all the tests, discouraging everyone to continue researching. Which was fortunate since the main inhabitants found them meddling and intrusive.

PJ hung his head as he recalled the incident. He was close to tears since he, his Groovy Taxi, and his world were really down on their luck. He felt he was the few lucky survivors from that massive explosion, and he couldn't believe that paradise was lost to him as well as countless other lifeforms.

With Tinsel taken aback by the story, Rick laid an assuring hand on PJ's shoulder. "I can understand that. I remember losing everything I had after I slept for 150 years. But my friends and my true love helped me through. Hey, we can help you find a way to get you back on your feet! Tinsel and I can relate since we have allies trying to rebuild their lives."

"Leon and Octoman." she murmured.

"They're part of the Elite Mobile Task Force, and so are they." Clank pointed the pair out.

"Speaking of which, Clank is starting a prestigious school year in the fall," said Burt. "Roy and I helped enroll him in an academy specialized for advanced technology. A lot of promising children will be there, including his close friend, Alias. There are also some people who're interested in F-Zero racing." Burt listed them off as Mickey Marcus, Megan Violet, Jane B. Christie, Alexander O'Neil, Blitz Wagner, Terry Getter, and the place would be run by Prof. Yazoo. The location is in uptown Mute City, but there's also an academy located further south in Bianca City as well. Clank felt relieved he didn't have to move there.

"I am so stoked!" he beamed with excitement. "But I need to study hard so I can get ahead of my classmates."

"Well why don't you do that while Rick and Tinsel take care of PJ. Have you found him a place to stay temporarily?"

"I know just the place." he remarked.

He offered PJ to settle at the same apartment complex both he and Tinsel shared. Since the flat was unoccupied when she decided to move into Rick's room, she thought it'd be perfect for him and his Groovy Taxi; it was obviously the only thing he had close to home after the large explosion. They volunteered to assist PJ however they can, including re-enlisting him as a cabbie driver for the Galaxy Cab, as well as demonstrate his aspiring racing skills. Although Rick sternly mentioned that he'll keep a sharp eye on him to make sure he doesn't get reckless on the roads, unless PJ would challenge him to a friendly race.

 ** **A/N: I really liked that cute alien, PJ; he should have more of a backstory, especially that area I've mentioned. I'm not a huge fan of Maximum Velocity, but the Empyrean Colony is one of my favorite circuits, next to Synobazz, Ancient Mesa, Cloud Carpet, Tenth Zone East, and Beacon Port. Since they're nearly similar, I guess as far as looks go, I've decided to put two and two together; I wish Myamoto would put more innovation and development into representing different worlds/pilots which he sorely lacks as of late. I really want to look forward to the intel provided for those tracks on where they can be located and how they were created, as well as Aeropolis, Green Plant, and others.****

 **Also, this was a brief excerpt from the underrated action flick, Sucker Punch; the location of Babydoll's last fantasy sequence where Rocket sacrificed herself for her sis' freedom. I figured that place looked so similar to the Colony itself. So Rick and Tinsel met the adorable taxi cab driver. I can't help but feel sorry for little PJ; he and the circuit should be identified more and work hand in hand.**

 **Since Ending it All and GP Legend are done I'm not sure how to move the series forward; they said that MV takes place 25 years after the original, and I've been adding GP Legend to the main timeline, yet it's my least favorite aside from X. I can't be sure how I can move the series forward from here, so maybe PJ and the Empyrean Colony was probably a stunt. I wish I had the chance to beat the last chapter on Very Hard mode in order to unlock him; I probably would've done it.**


End file.
